


Encounters

by Mepharis



Series: Hollow Knight canon-divergence AU thing [2]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Dream No More Ending (Hollow Knight), No beta we die like the pale king, Self Harm, They/Them Pronouns for The Vessels (Hollow Knight)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:01:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28200555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mepharis/pseuds/Mepharis
Summary: Ghost's encounters with Hornet
Relationships: Hornet & The Knight (Hollow Knight)
Series: Hollow Knight canon-divergence AU thing [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2065851
Kudos: 41





	Encounters

**Author's Note:**

> What the fuck do i title this  
> I wrote this all in one sitting ill uhh maybe find someone to help me edit but for now gonna have to deal  
> enjoy

The first time they see her, it’s a bit of a relief.

They don’t know who she is, but she hasn’t attacked them yet, and that's good enough for them.

They’re a bit confused when they step towards the ledge she’s on, a hand starting to raise in greeting, only for her to turn and run the other way. No matter, though. She’s probably scared, not knowing they aren’t hostile. They smile inwardly. They’ll clear it up when they find her.

They can’t make the jump to the ledge she was on, though. Guess they’re going the long way around.

They see her a few more times throughout Greenpath. She keeps running away. Poor girl. She probably hasn’t seen many truly friendly bugs, from what they’ve seen so far.

She’s not hard to spot. The bright red cloak she wears contrasts easily against the dark greens of this area.

They hope they can catch up to her soon.

They see her in the open room. They’d have to jump down there to get her attention. Hopefully she knows a way back up.

She’s standing over something, but from where they are they can’t see what it is. They move lightly, hoping they don’t startle her, and jump down softly. Her reaction is immediate and is… not what they were expecting.

Her arm immediately points to them, a deadly needle-like weapon in her hand. She doesn’t turn to look at them. They startle, but realize she's likely just defending herself. They take a soft step forward.

“Come no closer, ghost.”

Ghost? They’re not a ghost. Their shell may have been shattered… more times than they were willing to admit, but they aren’t dead. What is she talking about?

“I’ve seen you, creeping through the undergrowth, stalking me.”

Something about her voice is familiar. They don’t know where they’ve heard it. She herself seems familiar now that they think about it.

Nonetheless, this sentence serves only to confuse them more. They haven’t been stalking her. Sure, they wanted to catch up to her, but they were also just exploring. She just happened to be there. Stalking was too strong a word.

“This old kingdom… A terrible thing awakens. I can smell it in the air…”

She trails off, head turning slightly. Not enough for them to clearly see her face.

“I know what you are. I know what you’d try to do. I can’t allow it.”

They don’t get the time to process this before she turns to face them completely. She gets into a battle stance with a shout, and the fight begins before they can stop it.

She’s strong. She’s beaten them so many times they’ve lost count. Every time they make their way back to her she gives them no chance to do anything. Oddly enough, she doesn’t seem phased in the slightest at them seemingly coming back from the dead.

It’s a long time before they do it, but eventually they wear her out. She crouches over, breathing heavily. They don’t know what to do, but it doesn’t matter.

She straightens up, almost trying to hide the fact that she's been beaten. Without another word, she throws her needle into the foliage above and disappears soon after.

It’s only after she’s left that they notice what she’d been standing over. The deceased body of a bug that looks eerily like them. They get chills.

Suddenly, they’re glad she chose to run away this time.

They weren’t expecting to see her here, in the wastes, but here she is. That same bug in the red cloak. 

She stands in front of a sign below them. She’s staring up at them, watching their every move. She scares them a bit. They make their way down anyway.

Just like in Greenpath, she runs off the moment they get close. This time, they deliberately follow her.

The next room is a long one. On the other side is some sort of statue and what looks like a door. A pool of acid runs between the two sides. She stares at them a moment longer than normal, before throwing her needle to the other side. She follows it soon after, disappearing once more.

They’re glad, but they can’t help but still be curious as to who she is.

A tall statue stands still in front of them, permanently wet from the rain in the City. The bug depicted in it looks too familiar for comfort. They have some sort of connection to them, but they can't for the life of them figure out what. 

They don’t get a chance to think before a needle is thrown in front of their shell, a bit too close for comfort. They startle backwards as she comes flying behind it. Panicked, they reach for their weapon, only for her to raise a hand in an attempt to calm them. Confused, they look at her. Is she not going to attack them?

“Again we meet, little ghost.” She says. This is the second time she’s called them ghost. It’s odd. They like being called that, even if it’s not meant as a name. She speaks softer than last time.

“I'm normally quite perceptive. You I underestimated, though I've since guessed the truth.”

They calm slightly. They’re still nervous, but it doesn’t seem like she’ll attack them. 

“You’ve seen beyond this kingdom's bounds. Yours is resilience born of two voids.”

They feel like she means something deeper when she says the two voids comment. 

“It’s no surprise then you’ve managed to reach the heart of this world. In doing so, you shall know the sacrifice that keeps it standing.”

She turns toward the statue with that, though they feel like she’s still looking at them.

“If, knowing the truth, you’d still attempt a role in Hallownest’s perpetuation, seek the Grave in Ash and the mark it would grant to one like you.”

She moves to leave but they have questions. They're confused. They don’t know what she means at all. One thing is mainly running through their mind, though. Although they expect no answer, as most bugs could never hear them, they still think it’s worth a try.

_ ‘Name?’ _

It’s a single word, but they think it's enough. They think it hard, attempting to get the question in her mind. For a moment they think she didn’t get the message, just like every other bug, but she surprises them once more. She doesn’t turn to look at them, but they hear her speak one last word.

“Hornet.”

She disappears behind her needle, and although they still don’t know who she is, it’s something. Turning to look at the statue, they read the words written underneath it.

_ Memorial to the Hollow Knight _

They don’t see Hornet for quite some time, so they get a bit of a mental whiplash when she shows up out of nowhere in the Kingdom’s Edge.

She stares silently at them like before, and once again runs away when they come close. They know better by now, though. She’s not running. She’s leading them.

They find the bench before they follow her, not entirely convinced just yet that she won’t just attack them.

They jump down to where she is and realizes the room she’s in. Big and open with two conveniently placed gates at the only two entrances. They know there will be a fight.

They step into the arena and like they thought, the gates shut. 

Like the first time they truly interacted with her, she doesn’t look at them, opting instead to point her needle at them once more. 

“So you’d pursue the deeper truth? It isn’t one the weak could bear.”

The area shakes at her words, and they struggle to keep their balance before it stills again. The ash blows just a bit harder.

She turns to them, lowering her needle. She hadn’t done that in Greenpath. They don’t think this fight will be out of hostility.

“Prove yourself ready to face it. I’ll not hold back. My needle is lethal and I'd feel no sadness in a weakling's demise.” 

Prove themself. They can do that… they hope.

“Show me you can accept this kingdom's past and claim responsibility for its future.”

She gets into a battle stance with another shout, and the fight starts once more.

Hold back she truly does not, as they learn the hard way, but they beat her eventually.

Again like before, she crouches over breathing heavily, but she doesn’t hide her loss this time.

“...So strong…” She whispers. They feel proud at this statement. She’s strong too. They even look up to her strength now, at the end of this fight. 

“You could do it, if you had the will.” She says between breaths. They shift a little bit. 

“But could you raise your nail once knowing it’s tragic conception? And knowing yourself?...”

For the first time, they hear a true emotion in her voice, although they can’t pinpoint what it is.

Finally she straightens up, looking at them seemingly with determination. 

“Then do it, Ghost of Hallownest! Head onward. Burn that mark upon your shell and claim yourself as King.” 

She throws her needle and disappears with that. Turning, they walk forward to the next room.

They find the cast-off shell quickly, and feel a strange energy coming from it. It’s one they feel should be comforting but… isn’t.

They enter quicker than normal, wanting to leave fast as possible.

They touch the odd glowing thing at the end of it, and the mark Hornet referred to seemed to literally burn itself onto them. That odd energy coming from the shell entered them in a strong wave. Too strong. It felt like learning 100 spells at once.

They turn to make their way out, stumbling. They barely even notice the shell crumbling around them, until it’s too late.

They don’t make it out in time.

When they wake up they’re in someone's arms. They can’t tell whose, but they realize quickly after they’re traveling along a string of thread leading to a very familiar needle.

Hornet places them on the ground quickly and leaves before they can do anything. They’re a bit sad. She just saved their life. The least they could do is thank her. No matter.

As they leave this part of Kingdom’s Edge, they think about her a bit more. They decide they like the name Ghost. 

When they reach the top of the abyss once more, they’re a bit surprised to see Hornet standing at the entrance. They make their way over to her.

“Ghost.” She greets them immediately. For the first time in quite a while during their time in this kingdom, they feel happiness again just from seeing her and hearing their name.

“I see you’ve faced the place of your birth, and now drape yourself in the substance of its shadow.”

The “Place of your birth” comment catches them off guard. They assumed, from what they had…  _ seen _ down there, but it was odd to hear it confirmed. They have no memories of the place. How did she even know? They think it has something to do with her seeming familiarity.

“Though our strength is born of a similar source, that part of you, that crucial emptiness, I do not share.”

Another odd cryptic comment they don’t fully understand. They know what she means by crucial emptiness, though. The void that makes up their being and the beings of their siblings down below.

“Funny then, that such darkness gives me hope. Within it, I see the chance of change.” She tilts her head just slightly.

“A dangerous journey you would face, but a choice it can create. Prolong our world's stasis, or face the heart of it’s infection.”

She walks forward some, staring out over the ledge. She’s slightly behind them now, but for some odd reason they can’t bring themself to look at her. She speaks again after a moment.

“I’d urge you to take that harder path, but what end may come, the decision rests with you.”

With nothing else, they walk away as Hornet’s gaze follows them.

Once again showing up in a place they don’t expect her to, they see her sitting next to them as they wake up in Deepnest. Herrah was the last seal they needed to break.

Hornet doesn’t acknowledge them directly. It's after a moment of silence that she starts speaking.

“So you’ve slain the Beast… and you head towards that fated goal.”

There's an odd sadness in her voice. They don’t think they’ll like what she's about to say. 

“I’d not have obstructed this happening, but it caused me some pain to knowingly stand idle.”

They stare at her. It’s not like they thought she couldn’t feel, but it was odd hearing her say it. She notices their gaze.

“...what? You might think me stern but I'm not completely cold.” She says with a hint of exasperation. 

She looks down, and they realize what she’s about to say won’t be good.

“We do not choose our mothers, or the circumstances into which we are born. Despite all the ills of this world, i’m thankful for the life she granted me.”

It takes them a moment but they realize what she is implying.

Oh.

_ Oh. _

Herrah was her mother. They just murdered her mother. In front of her. They shake a little bit. 

“It’s quite a debt I owed. Only in allowing her to pass, and taking the burden of the future in her stead, can I begin to repay it.” She continues. They hesitate a moment.

“Leave me now, Ghost. Allow me a moment alone before this bedchamber becomes forever a shrine.”

It’s only upon sadly leaving the room that they hear a small sniffle.

  
  


They hadn’t gone up just yet. They were glad they hadn’t.

They knew everything by now. They relived a memory that had sparked so many others. The weight of their circumstances was truly realized after it.

Stood in front of the black egg was Hornet. At least they finally knew who she was.

Hornet was their sister. And inside the prison behind her was another one of their siblings. One that didn’t deserve the life they got only to have ripped away from them. The Hollow Knight.

She looks at them as they approach. They wonder if she knows they know now.

“The path is opened. One way or another an end awaits inside.”

They know what they’re getting into by now. An end awaits inside, and they know it won’t be a good one for them, no matter what they do.

“I won’t be joining you in this. That space is built to sustain your likes. It’s bindings would drain me were I to join.” 

They know she can’t but they wish she could. Maybe it is for the best, though. 

“Don’t be surprised. I’ll not risk my own life in your attempt, though if the moment presents I’ll aid as I am able.” 

They find a bit of comfort in that statement. They stay a moment longer. They know what they have to do, but they don’t want to. They don’t want to truly die.

Hornet notices their hesitance.

“Ghost of Hallownest, you possess the strength to enact an end of your choosing. Would you supplant our birth-cursed sibling, or would you transcend it?”

It’s a very rare occurrence, them crying. They could feel. They were imperfect and they knew it. They were proud of it, even. But even then, crying was rare.

But it happened again now. Black tears streamed down their face and even Hornet seemed a bit shocked.

They hugged her and she, albeit hesitantly, hugged them back.

The two siblings stayed like this for a while. It seemed they both knew what Ghost’s fate was.

Soon it was time, though. With one last look back, they walk through into the Black Egg.

The fight with the Hollow Knight was harrowing, to say the least. Sure, they had fought Hornet before twice, but they hadn’t known she was their sister, and even then. It was never with the intent to kill.

This was.

Truly, they didn’t mind their inability to speak. But when their sibling started stabbing themselves, they wished on their fathers name that they could make them hear their screaming.

They fought for father knows how long, but at some point, their sibling raised their nail to stab themself again. 

They didn’t get to, this time.

An all too familiar needle flew through the air, piercing their siblings shell. They stared in shock. Hornet came flying behind it, landing on their tall sibling. She drove the needle further in, and shouted something at them. They couldn’t make out what she said, but it didn’t matter. They had to take the opportunity. 

They swung their dream nail.

It was a while before Hornet woke up. After her sibling had successfully entered The Hollow Knights mind, she had lost consciousness. She honestly hadn’t expected to survive.

Grabbing her needle, she pushed herself up. Her cloak was dirty, stained with void from the egg and dust, and a web-like crack ran through the hard shell of her hip, where she had landed on the floor.

It was silent around her. She knew what it meant.

Climbing out of the crater that had formed, she caught a glimpse of white out of the corner of her eye.

They lay the vessel’s mask - Ghost’s mask - broken in two. A puddle of void lay beneath it. The Hollow Knights shell had been completely shattered, pieces scattered across the floor.

A bittersweet feeling passed over her as she noticed the orange infection had completely faded from her surroundings. At least their sacrifices weren’t in vain.

With a respectful nod to her siblings' broken shell, she left the temple.

She didn’t notice the two shades hiding in the corner, watching her leave.

**Author's Note:**

> I listened to the Tetris 99 theme for 4 hours writing this  
> This is part of the same universe as 'Pretending', they're all gonna be part of a single,, AU(?)  
> fun


End file.
